Peter Jackson's The Lord of The Rings film trilogy is one of the most beloved fantasy franchises of all time. Based on the novels of J.R.R. Tolkien, The Lord of The Rings is a three-part epic fantasy story that tells the story of Frodo Baggins and his journey to destroy the one ring. Accompanied by a fellowship of humans, hobbits, a dwarf, and an elf, the beloved story features some of the best on-screen battles, orcs, magic, ringwraiths, and a previously unimagined world on screen.
Following the success of the LOTR trilogy, Jackson took on The Hobbit, which was adapted from the novel to another trilogy. Just when fans thought they would not get to visit Middle-Earth again, Amazon Studios announced that they would take the helm for the next LOTR adaptation, this time for on-demand television. In a contract with the author's estate, Harper Collins, and New Line Cinema, the show is slated for its first season in a multiseason TV show in 2021.
10 Amazon's Lord of The Rings Release Date
Since the announcement, fans have been wondering as to the official release date of Amazon's The Lord of the Rings show. So far, there has been no official announcement as to the exact date of the upcoming fantasy show. Jennifer Salke, an Amazon exec was quoted saying:
“It’ll be in production in two years; [but] 2021 is the hope.”
While Amazon Studios are still unsure as to the exact release date for the show, they have already renewed the show for a second season with the same writers who are working on the first which is still currently being filmed.
9 The Budget
The budget of the show has been the topic of conversation among many on the web including fans and critics alike. Amazon Studios reportedly signed a $250 million contract with Tolkien's estate, HarperCollins, and New Line Cinema to produce the multi-season show for TV. It's also been reported that the show's budget is set to be at least $1 billion, which would make it the biggest TV show budget in history.
8 Which Timeline is Amazon's Lord of The Rings Show Set Within?
A question that fans have been asking; is when the show will be set. Jackson's trilogy covered Frodo's journey to Mordor to destroy the ring, while The Hobbit films follow Bilbo Baggins's story. Amazon Studios have confirmed that the show will set during The Second Age or the Age of Númenor, which is the 3,441 year period ahead of The Fellowship of the Ring.
The world received confirmation of this from the official Twitter account for the show via tweets featuring maps from the books. On the 7th of March, a tweet confirmed this by saying "welcome to the Second Age".
7 The Plot
At this stage, there has not been a script assigned yet, but there are multiple routes that the staff writers could with. We already know that the film is essentially a prequel to The Lord of The Rings films, which means anything that happened prior to Frodo taking on his quest could happen. In a nutshell, this means that the lucky writers at Amazon Studios have a couple of thousands of years worth of LOTR lore to play around with.
6 The Writers and Directors
Patrick McKay and J.D. Payne, two writers, are the co-showrunners for the upcoming LOTR show. On being appointed the two, in a joint statement said:
“We feel like Frodo, setting out from the Shire, with a great responsibility in our care. It is the beginning of the adventure of a lifetime.”
Joining the two showrunners is Bryan Cogman, who will join the team as a consultant. Cogman is best known for his career, having gone from an assistant on HBO's Game of Thrones to scribing episodes of HBO's most-watched fantasy series. Other notable writers joining the LOTR team include Justin Dohle (Stranger Things), Stephany Folsom (Toy Story 4), Gennifer Hutchinson (Breaking Bad, Better Call Saul), and Helen Shang from the Hannibal team.
On the directorial side of things, Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom's J.A. Bayona will take the director's seat for the first two episodes of season one and will also act as an executive producer.
5 The Cast
After many a report pertaining to concerns around casting, Amazon Studios have finally released the first fifteen names of actors and actresses joining the cast. They are Robert Aramayo, Owain Arthur, Nazanin Boniadi, Tom Budge, Morfydd Clark, Ismael Cruz Cordova, Ema Horvath, Markella Kavenagh, Joseph Mawle, Tyroe Muhafidin, Sophia Nomvete, Megan Richards, Dylan Smith, Charlie Vickers, and Daniel Weyman.
Two notable names from the abovementioned list are Robert Aramayo who played a younger version of Eddard Stark in Game of Thrones, and Joseph Mawle who played Benjen Stark. Morfydd Clark is famous for her roles in Saint Maud and His Dark Materials and it was previously reported that she will play a younger version of Galadriel in Amazon's The Lord of The Rings.
4 The Characters
As mentioned above, the show will feature some familiar characters to fans of the books and Jackson's films, including Galadriel. Other reports have indicated that fans can also expect Elrond to appear. The character who was played by Hugo Weaving in Jackson's trilogy plays a pivotal role in this work of Tolkien's. It was during the Second Age that Elrond created Rivendell as a safe harbor for the fleeing Elves. As fans saw in The Lord of the Rings film trilogy, Elrond played a key role in defeating Sauron and speaking of Sauron, there's also word that the character will play a crucial role in Amazon's show, however at this time, there has been no official report on who will be cast to play him.
3 Nudity in The Lord of The Rings?
It's been reported that the showrunners of Amazon's LOTR show have hired an "intimacy coordinator", Jennifer Ward Lealand, whose job is basically making actors feel comfortable and safe during sex scenes. Other indications that the show will feature nudity includes a series of casting calls and one new crew member. Another indication from the rumor mill, which is as intriguing was a casting call that called for actors who are “comfortable with nudity” for a project for an upcoming Amazon Prime project.
2 The Setting
The setting for the upcoming fantasy romp was revealed when Amazon Prime posted a map image of the island of Númenor. For those who are not hardcore LOTR fans, Númenor is the home to Aragorn's people.
Númenoreans are essentially human but with a much longer lifespan, akin to the lifespans of Elves, and one such character is Aragorn, of course. Númenoreans lived on their isle until they had to flee when it was destroyed, so perhaps we'll be treated to seeing that $1 billion budget bring this to glorious life on screen.
1 No Peter Jackson
Perhaps the only news which truly bothers fans of the films, is that Peter Jackson won't be joining the team at Amazon Prime for the series. During a panel at last year's New York Comic-Con Jackson stated:
"I was a guy who didn't get to see the Lord of the Rings like everybody else because I had to make it, so I'm looking forward to seeing somebody else's take on the Tolkien world."
It might be a loss to many fans, not having Jackson on the project, however, many other fans are brimming with excitement to see what Amazon Studios can cook up with their upcoming adaptation of the beloved fantasy.
NEXT: 10 Fantasy TV Shows To Watch If You Love The Lord Of The Rings
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